COURIER NEWS ALL-AREA PREVIEW: Player of the Year candidates

From now until the Courier News All-Area package runs, The Inner Circle will review the candidates for our annual awards, going position-by-position each day leading up to the posting of the All-Area package on Monday, June 25.

We will also give the readers here a chance to vote each day on who they think should be the choice to receive first-team honors.

The Courier News area includes all of Somerset and Hunterdon counties, the western part of Union County, as well as Dunellen, Middlesex, Piscataway, South Plainfield, Wardlaw-Hartridge and Timothy Christian in Middlesex County.

Candidates are generated from nominations by their coaches and by the Courier News softball staff. Factors considered for selection of awards include the opinions of the Courier News and Inner Circle softball staff writers, opposing coaches, statistics and strength of schedule.

Voting on this blog is for entertainment and opinion-generating purposes only and will not directly determine the winners. All awards are decided by Simeon Pincus and Nicole VonGonten.

Here are the four candidates for Player of the Year. Scroll to the bottom of vote for your choice:

PLAYER of the YEAR 2012

ZARA JAKUBASVoorheesSenior pitcherJakubas turned in another fine season, helping the Vikings to the championship of the Skyland Conference Raritan Division and an 18-4 record.The right-hander finsihed with the area’s best ERA at 0.82, and allowed just nine walks all season in 128 innings. She also enjoyed the highest strikeout rate of her career, fanning 9.8 per 7 innings after whiffing 7.7 batters per 7 last season.Hitting second in the Vikings’ order, the senior chipped in a .421 batting average with 11 RBIs.

JENNA KULBACKGovernor LivingstonSenior catcherAfter hitting .422 with 21 RBIs as a varsity rookie last year, Kulback took a major step forward this season, as she helped lead Governor Livingston to its second straight Union County Tournament and UCC Watchung Division crowns.Kulback, who is heading to Division I Lafayette College, batted .585 with four doubles, three triples, four homers and 28 RBIs playing in the largest and most competitive of the Union County Conference’s three divisions.She delivered her most dramatic hit with a two-out, two-strike, game-tying homer in the seventh inning of the county quarterfinals – a game GL won in 8 innings – and then went 3-for-4 with a double and three RBIs in the final.

ALYSSA VANDERVEERHillsboroughSophomore catcherThe first-year varsity performer acclimated herself quite quickly to varsity pitching – and that’s playing in the area’s toughest division.Vanderveer helped Hillsborough to the Skyland Conference Delaware Division championship and its 10th trip to the Somerset County final in 11 seasons. She hit .457 with five doubles and 10 homers, which tied her for tops in the area. She also scored 16 runs and posted 32 RBIs for the Raiders and was named, unanimously, by conference coaches as one of the area’s best players.

STEPHANIE ZENGELNorth HunterdonSenior centerfielderThe four-year starter wrapped up her stellar career with her best season yet, as she helped the Lions to 25 wins and second-place finishes in the Skyland Delaware, Hunterdon/Warren/Sussex and North 2 Group IV sectional tournaments.Zengel, who was the other unanimous mention among opposing coaches as one of the area’s top players, hit .426, including 8 doubles, 3 triples and 10 home runs, which tied her for the lead in the area. She scored 38 runs and drove in 43, finishing her career with 155 hits (.391 avg.), 32 doubles, 8 triples, 16 homers, 110 runs and 105 RBIs.

Who is your choice to be the 2012 Courier News/Inner Circle Softball Player of the Year?

Alyssa Vanderveer, Hillsborough (64%, 152 Votes)

Steph Zengel, North Hunterdon (26%, 62 Votes)

Jenna Kulback, Governor Livingston (8%, 20 Votes)

Zara Jakubas, Voorhees (2%, 3 Votes)

Total Voters: 237

Loading …

About Simeon Pincus

A graduate of Kean University, Simeon Pincus has been covering NJ sports since 1997, including softball at the Courier News since 1999 and girls soccer since 2001. He began covering CN girls basketball in 2013-14

Blogroll

About the Authors

Mike BeckerMike Becker is a graduate of Rutgers University. He has been working at the Home News Tribune since the spring of 2011. During his time at Rutgers, he covered the school's football, and both the men's and women's basketball teams, for WRSU-FM.E-mail Mike

Simeon PincusA graduate of Kean University, Simeon Pincus has been covering NJ sports since 1997, including softball at the Courier News since 1999 and girls soccer since 2001. He began covering CN girls basketball in 2013-14E-mail Simeon